Helena goes to Hogwarts
by TabithaMcGonagall
Summary: Helena is taken from the proleatheans by Snape and brought to Hogwarts. They will form a father/daughter bond and meet characters from both worlds! As this story has Helena as the lead character, there will be *cutting/spanking* Don't read if you have issues with these. T rating initially.
1. Chapter 1

_**To give a little back story, here I am assimilating that Thomas stole Helena from the convent as a baby and took her to the __Proletheans__. He however was in charge of her and this is long before they knew about the clones. The story will move from there to Hogwarts quite quickly. This story involves cutting and spanking. Neither will go into great detail but don't read if you don't like/ or are affected by these things.**_

I sat in the large expansive room with blood trailing down my back. It certainly wasn't an unusual occurrence. My room had no working lights, only the light from the corridor outside shone through leaving everything else in shadow. I enjoyed sitting in the shadow, where no passersby could see me. I was a disgrace, Thomas told me often. I would stay in my empty room forever and repent for being beastly. He said I was born incorrectly as punishment for disbelief in my previous life. Whilst I prayed and repented I would use the silver blade to cut. Thomas told me I had to pray that I would become an angel, so an angels wings I cut.

I toyed the blade between my finger tips. I had been more than adequate and it would please Thomas. I lived to please Thomas. If I pleased him he would send less men and women into my room. I placed the blade carefully on the floor at the edge of the light before crawling back into the corner as far as I could. I watched the door. People passed by infrequently, my room was in the centre of the compound but almost at the end of a corridor. Only Thomas' office was farther than my room. I couldn't remember what the other rooms were called or who they belonged to. I didn't know how long it had been since I had left my room though it was too long to remember more than a blur.

When I wasn't repenting, I would make up stories in my head. They were a distraction from the hunger and pain. In my make believe world I had always believed and wasn't beastly. I had lots of food, as much bread and water as I could eat. Maybe I'd be allowed out of my room and know the people who walk past the door. The ones who don't come in. Thomas said that making up stories was an evil trait and that I shouldn't wish for more than what I had but I couldn't stop. I had little else to occupy my mind.

The light had began to dim outside when I realised no one had been in since the morning. Of late it was unusual. Thomas had to check that I was not misbehaving. He said that misbehaving was my middle name, right after Helena, my name before that. A key went into the lock of the metal door, Thomas' face appeared in the glass square outside. The door creaked open and I slowly moved forwards, Thomas did not like me to hide in the dark when he came into the room.  
"Thomas." I snarled. I was hungry.

He set a cage on the floor in front of hiself and opened the small door.  
"In Helena." Thomas had once kept me in a cage for a very long time after I fought back. It stayed in his office behind his desk so that he could teach me and make sure I wouldn't misbehave. I wondered if I had misbehaved. "Helena I will not ask you again." Thomas demanded. I crawled into the small cage and curled up. I worried Thomas would be upset if I got blood on the cage, though I wasn't sure that I could help it.

He carried the cage unceremoniously through to his office and set it behind his desk. I hissed and he kicked the cage with the back of his foot in response.  
"Tucker, Maxwell. Update." Thomas said as the two heavily armed men entered the office.  
"The defences are down and the devil of magic is searching." Maxwell responded.  
"How many living?" Thomas asked.  
"Not many. They have gone to the promised land." Tucker answered raising his arms up to the sky.  
"Let us pray." Thomas said openly.

The door blasted inwards and the men didn't break the prayers. Thomas said to never break from prayer. They were absorbed and never to be interrupted. I could see little of the commotion and yet heard two bodies hit the floor. The intruder yelled;  
" Avada Kedavra." And with a brilliant flash of green light which hurt my eyes, Thomas dropped dead in front of me. I clawed at the cage.  
"Thomas." I said quietly and unsure. How could this happen? Thomas was a soldier of the Lord. He protected us all.

"Helena." The intruders deep voice said. I looked up through the bars and snarled loudly. He was dressed completely in black. His hair was black and to his shoulders, he didn't look friendly like Thomas did. He came closer and I hissed in response. "How about I let you out and we can leave here?" He said. I snarled deep and feral. I didn't want anyone coming anywhere near me. "Filthy disgusting muggles. Deserving of their fate." He snapped and reached over to grab the handle on the top of the cage, I hissed but crunched smaller to the bottom of the cage. I didn't want the intruding man near me. He killed Thomas. I curled up my firsts and laid my head forwards onto them, shutting my eyes tight. The swaying of the cage felt awful. Maybe this was punishment for my misbehaviour.

I could feel cool air and was uncertain what it was but I didn't dare open my eyes. I snarled to myself quietly and hunched even smaller. With a brisk movement the cool air went away and the light behind the lids of my eyes went completely dark. The swaying didn't stop though. I pushed my fingers through the right side of the case to touch the black and felt cloth. I withdrew back to my position. I hadn't felt smooth cloth in a long time. Since before even the long time I spent in the cage. The intruder who carried the cage had covered it in black cloth.

A sudden spinning feeling came over me and I moved to grip onto the cage walls. My stomach lurched and for a moment I almost felt glad for the long time since I'd last eaten. The spinning stopped and the swaying started again. The intruder must have been walking. I tried to think to make up a story but my mind would not focus for the swaying. I resolved to focus on the swaying instead. Maybe when the swaying stopped, everything would be back to normal and Thomas would say I had misbehaved for making up storied of an intruder. He would tell me I needed to try harder to be an angel and I would agree with him. This story wasn't good at all.

When, after the longest time the swaying stopped. The intruder pulled the cage from his cloth robes. I hissed at the light hitting the back of my eyelids and resolved to not open my eyes. I was so used to the dark that this felt like an assault of the senses.  
"Severus, the hospital wing surely." A voice said. It was not the intruder. Severus must be the intruders name.  
"She could be a danger. My quarters." Severus answered. A danger. Did he mean me? I wasn't dangerous, I always did as I was told lest I want a smack from Thomas' belt.  
"I will send for Madam Pomfrey." The voice replied. The swaying began again and I gave an exhausted snarl. Usually when the light stopped coming in from the glass square it was time to sleep. That felt like an eternity ago. My stomach rumbled with hunger. I wished that Thomas would wake me from this story and allow me some bread. Even the bread with the green edges would do.

Soon the cage stopped swaying and I felt it touch a hard surface. I stayed perfectly still although the cold make my skin cover in goose bumps. Not long later I heard the voice again and another person, a woman. I snarled with what voice I had left. My throat was becoming hoarse. I decided to listen finally.  
".. shocked she's alive." Ended the woman.  
"No, she wouldn't come out." Severus said as though in answer to a previous question. "You really didn't know until recently?" He accused.  
"I swear it." The voice answered.  
"Can she speak?" Asked the woman.  
"I don't know. She hisses and snarls like a feral cat." Snape mused.  
"You can't keep her like that overnight Severus. I should do at least a basic examination. She is malnourished and evidently has other health problems." The woman said. I hissed. No one was going to examine me if I had anything to do with it.

"Helena?" I stubbornly stayed put. "Helena, look at me. I don't want to upset you further." I lifted my head, he'd better not touch me. Severus was the one talking to me. I studied the others. The voice had been from an elderly man, with long silver hair and a beard. His expression was hard to discern behind the wrinkles of his face. The woman was plump and friendly looking. Thomas would have said the devil hid behind a mask of a smile like hers. In my looking at the people in the room, I realised that the cage was gone. I didn't know what to do or where to go. I looked around the room, there was a desk and seats, I knew those things because Thomas had them but nothing else made sense. How could I make up this story of things I'd never seen before. Was I being tested?  
"Severus, she's beginning to panic." The woman said.  
"Helena." I looked at him again. "The room through that door is set up for you. You can go in there." He motioned to a doorway close to me. I itched for a blade. Maybe repenting would help but I certainly didn't feel comfortable with people watching. I would only do that in front of Thomas.

I looked into the doorway and saw that the light was less bright. Maybe I could do what the Severus said. I moved my stiff limbs slowly to crawl towards the door. I didn't look back at the people, only moving with forward purpose. Of the many strange objects in the room, I found a corner which was both dark and empty. I curled up there hoping the people wouldn't follow. I wanted to sleep. The woman and Severus did follow though. The woman came close to me with a bottle in her hand.  
"This will make you feel better." She soothed. I would not be lured by the devil. I hissed. She came ever closer until I smacked the bottle from her hand and snarled. Had I been more certain of myself I would have bitten her for being so close. She did back away and leave the room after my snarl.  
"She was trying to help, Helena. " Severus said. I didn't know if I believed him. He wasn't the devil and he wasn't an angel. Of those things I was sure. Maybe he was a soldier like Thomas. Thomas told me I could trust the soldiers. "When you drink, you can go to sleep." He promised. He placed a cup within my reach. It was filled with water and I was very thirsty. I took the cup whilst still curled up and drank deeply at the liquid. It tasted different to the water in my room but I was so thirsty I drank it right up, spilling droplets on myself and the floor. I carefully placed the cup upside down on the soft floor to indicate I was finished as I'd always been taught. I placed my head back on my fists and shut my eyes hoping to wake up back in my room.

I woke up feeling entirely displaced. I was on the big soft box in the middle of the room, with a blanket over myself. I'd not had a blanket for years. I pushed the blanket off and curled up. Thomas said I wasn't deserving of a blanket. I was wearing clothes too, night clothes. They were entirely white which seemed odd to me because I was always so dirty. Although, my skin looked clean. I tugged a blonde curl in front of my face and saw that it was clean too. Maybe Thomas had taken pity on me and used the hose while I slept, it would not have been the first time. I recalled Thomas falling from his chair in front of the cage. No. Thomas couldn't be dead. He was a soldier of the lord.

I dropped from the box and crawled over to the corner. The corner was much safer than the high up box. I sat with my feet in front of me. They were covered in cloth too. I felt for my toes through it and marvelled at how odd it was that toes be covered. Upon sitting this way I realised that the padding around my bum wasn't the same. Thomas fastened me into towels most of the time, although if I wasn't too misbehaved and tried hard to be an angel, he would use real diapers. This was thin cloth, I worried I'd make a mess.

A woman entered the room. She looked around before seeing me in the corner and promptly sat on the floor at the end of the box.  
"Hi Helena. I'm Narcissa Malfoy, You can call my Cissa though if you'd like." I held back a snarl and studied her instead. Thomas said it was rude to stare at people but I did it anyway. This woman was slender, though not as thin as me. Her face was pretty but came to a point at her chin. She had blonde hair like mine although hers was straight. I felt a little jealous. Thomas told me to pray whenever I felt such a way but I didn't want to pray in front of her. "Professor Dumbledore and Severus asked me here to look after and help you whilst Severus teaches his classes." She said. I decided that Professor Dumbledore must be the voice. He had certainly looked like a professor. "I got you some clothes if you want to get changed." She added. I decided that she wasn't a devil. She looked as though she was trying hard to become an angel too.

She stood up and went over to a tall wooden box with doors and opened them. She removed items before retreating back to the floor across from me. "How about wearing this dress today Helena?" She asked and held up a simple black pinafore dress and long sleeved top. I nodded. I did not like wearing white. I was not an angel yet. She passed the top to me and I looked at it with interest. I wasn't sure how she expected me to work out how to put it on. Noticing my confusion Cissa went to move closer to me. She paused. "Would you like me to help?" She asked gently. I nodded and dropped the top in front of me. I wasn't sure how to even remove the night clothes I was wearing. She moved a little closer and I moved a little back. "It's alright Helena. I won't hurt you." She soothed over and over. She unfastened the buttons on the night shirt and slid it from my arms. I reached to my back and traced my fingers along my angel wings. The cuts were all scars already. This happened often and astounded Thomas that I healed so quickly. He would tell me to do more to make up for it. I sighed, missing him. Would this story be the one to never end?

I looked up to see Cissa studying me cautiously. "Madame Pomfrey said they should stop hurting completely in a few weeks. She can give you a potion to take away the pain for now though." She said. I wondered what she meant. She held the top up to me. "You'll need to put your arms and head in the holes." I tried to follow her instructions and was corrected a few times. Eventually, the top went over my head and was positioned in place. She repeated the process with the dress. "If you pull off your pyjama bottoms, You can wear tights if you're too cold." I looked at her in complete confusion. "How about if I do that too? Can you stand up?" What an odd question. Of course I could stand up. I lost the right to stand up for incessant misbehaviour. I wondered if that mattered when Thomas was not around. Cissa was not a devil, so maybe it was okay to do as she asked.

I stood slowly. It felt odd to do so after such a long time. Cissa pulled down the pants and pulled them off one foot at a time whist I held onto the wall. I quickly took my hands from the wall. Thomas would be mad if I left marks on the walls. She straightened the dress before moving backwards. "How about some food Helena? It's almost lunch time." I thought in my head, food was bread. I knew this from a story in bible I read. Before they changed my bible to the one with no stories in it. Thomas said that stories made me make up stories.

Cissa motioned out of the room. I was at a debate as to walking or crawling. Now that I was stood surely I should walk. Thomas would be displeased. Seeing my confusion Cissa spoke up. "Walk, you don't need to crawl anywhere, Helena. It's alright." I put on foot in front of the other until I was through the door way. Cissa followed me and walked right over to the area with cupboards. "Why don't you come sit over here whilst I fix some lunch." I walked over to the cupboards but did not sit down. I was entirely unsure what to do with myself.

The door opened on the other side of the cupboards and Severus entered. I rooted my feet to the spot. He turned to see us. "Sorry to disturb you from your lunch break Severus." Cissa said.  
"Not a problem. It's good to see you're awake Helena." He directed to me. I ignored him completely. My eyes fixed on the object Cissa was using. A blade with a small but long wooden block at the end. Maybe that was so you wouldn't cut your fingers. Thomas said there was an art to using blades. When you stopped cutting your fingers you had it down. He said it was one of the only things I was good at.

I rushed at Cissa as quickly as my legs would move and snatched the blade from her unsuspecting hands. I turned and pulled it across the skin of my arm, sprouting a line of red. Maybe Thomas wouldn't think me such a disappointment if I did him proud. I made two more cuts before the loud voice interrupted my thoughts.  
"Helena, Give me the knife." Severus spoke forcefully. Why would he want the blade? I was busy, trying to be an angel. I looked at him for a second in defiance and hissed before returning to my work. I made several more cuts. The 'M' of the word 'Thomas' sprouted blood as quickly as the previous letters. I could feels the devils in my blood pouring out. "Helena. I will not ask you again." Severus spoke though I barely heard. I moved the knife to work on the next letter but Severus grabbed hold of my arm above where I was cutting and pulled it away. I felt a hard swat land on my bum and let out a snarl. "Helena. Put the knife down right now." I dropped it from my hand. It landed with a thud as the point sunk into the ground not more than a fingers width from Severus' foot. "Idiot child." He muttered.  
"Severus." Cissa said chastising. She moved past us and put water on a cloth. Severus pulled me away from the cupboards and into the area with the soft seats.

"Helena sit." He said demandingly. I stood rooted still. Angry that he took the knife from me. I wasn't finished. No one had ever stopped me before I was finished. In fact often I was told to do more. I felt another hard swat land on my bum before my legs came out from under me and I landed on my bum on the seat.  
"Soldier Severus." I said quietly. I still wasn't sure though. Spanking did not make him a soldier. I had been spanked by men and women. Though he didn't seem interested in touching me unless for discipline. Thomas didn't like to touch me either.  
"What?" Severus said. I ignored him. Cissa placed the damp cloth on my arm and wiped at the blood. "Helena." He said. "Don't make me need to spank you again." I laughed.  
"Weak Soldier Severus." I muttered. I had barely felt his hand. He had no clue of a proper spanking.  
"Is she trying to wind me up on purpose?" Severus asked Cissa.  
"I think she is trying to work out your role. I should get my Psychology text books." Cissa said.  
"Hmph." Severus retorted.

Cissa began wiping at my arm with a dry cloth before rubbing some white paste onto it. I tried to wriggle away.  
"Stay still please Helena." Cissa said. I wanted to hiss at her but I held it back. She finished with the white paste and wrapped my arm in white cloth. I frowned at it and wondered if the cut were still there. I hoped Thomas wouldn't be mad. I had tried to be good.  
"Listen to me Helena." Severus said. I let my gaze meet his. Soldiers deserved respect and even if he was only maybe one, I would have to try. "Do you understand why taking knives and cutting yourself is wrong?" He asked. I frowned. Thomas said cutting was a fundamental part of repentance. It was right, not wrong.  
"No." I answered. Cissa stood up and went back over to the cupboard area.  
"You should not hurt yourself or others on purpose. It isn't healthy or nice. Do you understand?" He asked.  
"No." I said. I used to get the 'Do you understand' question a lot from Thomas. He said I had a scattered brain.

"Maybe understanding is too much to ask." Severus said as though to himself. "How about you agree to not do it again? No stealing. No touching knives. No cutting yourself." His eyes were serious and seriously black. I looked back bewildered. This soldier was crazy. "No hurting other people and you will try to behave. Not abiding by these rules will end in spanking. Do you understand that?"  
"Yes, Soldier Severus." I said quietly. He stood from the seat and went to help Cissa. I watched them closely as they make a quiet exchange. Cissa placed items on the round object in the centre of the cupboards.  
"Come sit at the table Helena. I expect that you're hungry." I did as he said and sat on a seat to the round table.  
"Your lesson plan Severus?" Cissa asked him. Severus pulled a flat object out of his robes and passed it to Cissa who folded it and left the room through the door.

"Helena. Do you know that you frightened Cissa when you took the knife from her? She thought you might turn it on her." Severus asked.

"Blades are to cut me." I answered simply. I was so done with all the strange rules and really wanted to be back in my room, with the locked door and the square of light to watch.

"Helena you are impossible. However Dumbledore thinks that I will be able to take care of you is beyond me. I have classes to teach and Narcissa was the only person I could think of that I trusted enough to watch you." He sighed.  
"I'm hungry." I interrupted. The pile of objects on the table contained no bread.  
"Then eat Helena. There is pumpkin pasties, fruit and even chocolate pudding. What more could an eleven year old girl want?"  
"Bread. Water. Sleep. Twelve, not eleven." I reeled off.  
"Let me guess, all the stupid muggles fed you was bread and water." He raged quietly. He stood and moved around the cupboards before placing a chunk of bread and a cup of water in front of me. "You will start to eat other foods soon. You are malnourished enough as it is. Wait. Twelve? Dumbledore said your eleventh birthday was March 15th." I chewed through the bed quickly before he might think to take it away and gulped down the water.

"Twelve, not eleven." I repeated. Severus took out an object like the one he gave Narcissa and scrawled furiously on it with another object. I took out a stick from his robes and tapped the object. It disappeared. Magic. One of the men at the ranch had said the intruder was magical. "Soldier Severus?" I asked and he turned to face me. "Sleep?" I asked, finding the day too much to take in.  
"If you sleep now you won't sleep tonight. Can you read?" Severus asked.  
"I read bible." I stated. The one with no stories because Thomas swapped them. He said stories helped me make up stories.  
"Well, the history of magic is your new bible. There is a copy on the table by the sofa. You can sit there and read." Severus indicated to the sofa.  
"Magic is devil." I snarled whilst walking to the sofa.  
"It won't hurt you to read it nevertheless." He snapped.  
"Yes Soldier Severus." I muttered and sat on the sofa.

I picked up the big book and read the first page of nonsensical text before the voice man with the silver beard walked into the room.  
"Dumbledore. So glad you weren't too busy to arrive immediately." Severus slurred sarcastically.  
"I can't say that I see the emergency Severus." Dumbledore replied calmly.  
"Helena says that she is twelve not eleven. I was angry at myself that I didn't her back in time for the sorting ceremony. It was irrelevant wasn't it? She should have been sorted a year ago and now be in her second year." Severus roared.  
"Calm yourself Severus." Dumbledore replied.  
"Don't even try to tell me you didn't know." He accused.  
"I don't know what to tell you Severus."Dumbledore sat on a chair at the table.  
"If you want her to continue to be in my care, the truth." Snarled Severus. I put the book aside to watch the confrontation. I'd never seen people arguing before. Thomas said that people who argue had devils inside of them.

"Helena slipped through my radar. I felt no trace of magic from the ranch until two days ago and even then it was but a glimmer. I believe I made no mistake Severus." Dumbledore urged.  
"Is she to attend classes? She frightened Narcissa today by cutting herself on purpose. I aren't certain that I can leave Helena with her again." Severus asked, accepting Dumbledore's premise.  
"She could stay with you Severus." Dumbledore suggested.  
"She could be a danger to other students." Severus snapped.  
"Then you will make sure she isn't." Dumbledore proclaimed. "She is in your care and you will take guardianship of her."  
"Why would I do that?" He retorted. If they were arguing about me, did that mean there were more devils in me too?

"She has no one else. You killed every last one of the muggles and if I were to rescind my statement from the ministry assuring them that you were a spy for myself whilst actively being a death eater, you will spend the rest of your days in Azkaban. You have spent long enough moping over Lily Evans. Killing to make up for killing is not your job. You will either distract yourself with this responsibility or live out your days thinking about nothing else." Dumbledore threatened. I started crying. I wanted the arguing to stop. Why wouldn't they stop?  
"Now you made her cry. Good going Albus." Severus bit.  
"What will it be Severus? Guardianship or Azkaban?" Dumbledore asked. Severus arrived beside me and passed me a piece of cloth to dry my eyes.  
"I will take guardianship of her but you had better keep your nose out of my business after that. If I am to be a parent it will be by my own rule." Severus declared.  
"Very well, my boy." Dumbledore said. "I'll expect you to return to teaching in the morning." He got up from his seat and swiftly left.

"Come over here Helena." I looked up at him, still sniffling and tears rolling. He pulled me towards him and wrapped his arms around me. He pulled back and I sat back beside him.  
"What did you do?" I asked.  
"The hug?" He asked back. I looked at him in confusion. "It's okay Helena. I'll look after you."  
"Until Thomas comes for me?" I asked. He would come. He wouldn't approve of these strange people.  
"I don't think he will Helena. I killed him right in front of you." Severus said solemnly. I didn't think that death would stop Thomas, if he had actually died at all.  
"Maybe. Not yet." I replied.  
"Did you always live with Thomas?" Severus asked oddly.  
"I don't remember." I answered.  
"How about you read until dinner and then you can go to sleep." Severus said.

After reading, bread and milk I was absolutely ready for sleep.  
"You need to shower and change. Do you need help?" I looked at Severus. Shower. Thomas had a shower in the bathroom off his office. The water came out warm and made the room steam up. I ignored his offer. "The bathroom is through there." He said pointing to a door on his left. I headed for the bathroom. "You should get some clothes to change into afterwards first." He said. I stood still and gazed at him with contempt. Why was everything so complicated and confusing. I never had the problem of changing clothes or showering or sitting to tables before. My life was a dark room, following orders of the only man I trusted. I sat down on the floor. I wasn't cut out for this. How could I try to be an angel when these new people were mixing everything up in my head.

Severus moved from the kitchen and went into my room. He returned with a small pile of clothes and a towel and headed for the bathroom. "Come Helena. You can go to bed soon after." I really didn't want to move. The temptation of going to sleep in the hopes I'd wake up near Thomas was strong enough to make me stand up and move my legs.

In the bathroom the shower was already switched on. "Face the wall Helena, I'll help you undress. I'll do my best not to look." Severus said to me.  
"Looking is not issue. Clothes are stupid." I muttered.  
"Turn." He demanded gently. I turned to face the wall and he pulled the dress over my head followed by the top. He folded them and placed them on the seat. "Take your knickers off yourself Helena. You need to start learning." I did as he said. "There's all in one shampoo and body wash. Use it." He directed me into the shower . The water was warm and felt very odd to be coming from above. I washed quickly and was instructed on how to turn off the water. Getting out of the shower Severus passed me the towel. I dried myself quickly. Facing the wall again, he passed me some clean knickers. I sighed.  
"I do not understand these." I muttered.  
"You will continue to not understand them until you realise that magic does not spawn from the devil." He said.  
"Hrmph." I retorted. It did too. I pulled them on before Severus pulled a night dress over my head.

"To bed Helena. " He said. I walked past him and went in to my room. I curled up in the corner and closed my eyes. "Helena you cannot sleep on the floor. I won't have it. People sleep in beds." I sighed. I felt arms under my own manuvering me onto the bed. I stayed still with my eyes shut. He pulled a blanket over me and left the room. I dreamed of Thomas' disappointment in me.

**Any reviews suggesting plot direction are welcome. Helena may just meet another clone in the next chapter! Let me know what you think!**


	2. Chapter 2

"Helena. Sitting in the corner is not my idea of you getting dressed." Severus said, standing in the door way.  
"Helena needs more sleep." I muttered and yawned. I had done my part, the night clothes were off. I didn't understand the insistence with getting ready for a day. Normally I could sleep until Thomas woke me and then go back to sleep afterwards, as long as I didn't sleep all day.

Severus went over to what I had learnt to be a wardrobe and pulled out a simple long sleeved black dress.  
"Stand Helena." Severus ordered. I could see that he meant it. I stood and raised my arms for him to pull the dress over my head. Once in place he fastened the buttons at the back.  
"Why are we rushing Soldier Severus?" I asked.  
"I am head of Slytherin house, Helena. That means I have students to see and timetables to hand out, all before I begin teaching at nine am." Severus answered. "I would also appreciate it if you didn't call me Soldier Severus." He added.  
"What is Slytherin?" I asked. He wondered off back to the wardrobe and pulled out more cloth.  
"Let me help you put this cardigan on. It's colder in my classroom than in here." I stood still whilst he moved my arms into the holes of the cardigan and straightened the sleeves of the dress underneath. "The school is split into four houses. Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Each house is named after a founder of the school and each student belongs to a house. As head of Slytherin, I am in charge of a quarter of the students at this school." He passed me a pair of what I had learnt to be socks to put on my feet. I didn't much like having my toes covered up but I pulled them on anyway.

"Am I a student?" I asked curiously. Severus twisted my socks so that they fitted me better. He brought over some solid black items.  
"I have no idea Helena. Last night I sent the paper work to formally adopt you to the Ministry, so whether or not you become a student, to me you will be my daughter." He picked up my foot and tried to place it into the black item, I tugged it back. "Will you please put on the shoes Helena?" I adamantly stood up and kept my feet out of reach.  
"No. What is adopt?" He sighed and put the shoes inside his robes as though to save them for later.  
"It means I will permanently be your guardian until you turn seventeen. It means you are my reasonability and in return you try your very best to do as I tell you." Severus answered. "Did you remember I asked you not to call me Soldier Severus?" He asked.  
"Yes. Guardian?" I replied.  
"That is almost as bad as Soldier. You can call me Snape, or I suppose so you should be inclined you could call me Father." He answered.  
"Father." I said to practise.  
"Now. Before we leave. I expect you to be well behaved which I realise is a big ask. We will go to the great hall which will be full of people. You will stay very close to me and try not to touch anything unless I tell you to. Do you understand this?" He asked. I nodded. I would have preferred to stay in my dimly lit room and go to sleep but I felt that asking would not give me what I wanted. "Come Helena, we must be going."

I followed him through the door into the room with the seats and cupboards and out through another door. This room had a desk and a seat, almost like Thomas' room. We left through another door to a circle of floor rising up. I watched Severus for a moment placing a foot on each flat part of the floor and did the same until the floor became completely flat again. Climbing the rising floor had made my legs hurt terribly. I followed Severus a little way farther before stopping. "Keep up Helena, we don't want to be late." Severus snapped. I sat down on the floor. My legs hurt too much to walk farther. Before yesterday I hadn't walked at all for years. Severus pulled me up by holding just under my arms and lent me over his arm before landing a firm swat on my bum. I burst into tears and not because it hurt. It didn't. My legs were the thing that hurt especially as he set me back down on my feet.

"Legs hurt Severus." I cried. My legs shook with the strain of trying not to sit back down on the floor. Severus looked at me carefully.  
"Stupid muggles should be treated like house elves. House elves have more brains." He muttered to himself. He picked me up again but this time lifted my feet from the ground and sat me against his hip with a leg at either side of him. I put my hand on his shoulder and buried my head in his chest before letting myself continue to cry. He began walking but I kept still, my legs still hurt and I was really tired. In my room at the ranch I had felt comfortable, maybe not always safe. Some of the men and women who came in were not kind but Thomas would reassure me and everything would be okay. I'd still have the dark room and the patch of light to watch when I wasn't busy creating my angel wings. Now I didn't have Thomas to tell me what was good and bad or who was good and bad. The changes were entirely overwhelming.

I began to hear a large amount of chattering voices which as we got closer, went quieter. Maybe they knew I didn't like a lot of noise but soon the chatter began again through more quietly. Eventually I felt Severus sit down as he moved my legs a little so that they would not get sat on. "Would you like something to eat Helena? There's pancakes which are similar to bread and there's plenty of milk." Severus asked. I nodded and sat back from his chest. He looked at my tear streaked face curiously before removing a piece of black cloth from a pocket in his robes and wiping at my face with it. "Everything is fine Helena. Here." He reassured and passed me a pancake. I nibbled at it until I decided that I liked it. It had a slightly different texture than bread and the taste had an unusual feeling. I drank a full cup of milk when Severus passed one to me before slowly eating a second pancake.

"How are you and your new ward, Severus?" I looked over to realise there was a woman sat beside us. She was fairly old and wore a green dress but she looked okay. I wasn't sure that looks could really distinguish a person's role anymore but she didn't look as though she was trying too hard to be cheerful like the devil matron.  
"Quite alright thank you Minerva." Severus answered.  
"Myself and some of the other Professors would be willing to help should you require it." Minerva offered.  
"Would you come to my rooms after dinner?" He asked gratefully.  
"Of course Severus." Was Minerva's response.

I rested my head against Severus' chest once more as he stood up. He kept one hand on me and seemed to move the other hand around a lot. He didn't say anything for some time whilst handing out the timetables.  
"Everyone wants to know Professor, who is the girl?" Asked a strange voice. I held on to Severus tighter.  
"That, is none of your darn business Malfoy. Five points from Slytherin." Severus retorted.  
"My Father.." Malfoy started.  
"Your father would be astounded to know what an arrogant nosey bully his son has become. If I hear one more threat from you, you will be scrubbing cauldrons every night for the next month. Do you understand?" Snape snarled. I was impressed by the snarl, it wasn't so animal like as my own snarl and yet it sounded even more fierce.  
"Yes Sir." Malfoy replied.

Severus continued to walk passing out timetables and was not asked a single further question after his students had heard the commotion with Malfoy. After some time Severus sped up his pace to a quick walk.  
"Are we going to your class, Severus?" I asked.  
"Yes. You're going to sit at a desk at the front and read some books. You are absolutely under no circumstances allowed to touch a knife or blade of any kind. Alright?" It sounded entirely unfair. I wasn't about to argue though, I hated arguing.  
"Yes." I answered meekly. I looked around as we entered the classroom. It was quite dark which pleased me, the assault of light on my eyes recently had not been comfortable. There long desks with lots of seats and further smaller desks at the front as well as a large desk higher up. Severus stood me on my feet.  
"I want you to sit right here. I have a few different books you could read and I will be right here by the big desk if you need me." He motioned to the desk at the front left hand corner, nearest the door which I felt sure led to his room which was like Thomas' but from another angle. I sat in the seat.

"Are you alright Helena?" Severus asked. I felt like the question was loaded. I was a long way away from alright. I decided not to answer and tried hard not to cry. I didn't think I'd wanted to cry so much in the last ten years as I had in the last two days. He picked me up from the seat I sat in and carried me over to his desk where he sat me gently on the edge facing him. I heard noises of people entering the classroom but I didn't look around. "I just have to start the class off with some work." He added. I nodded.

"Welcome to another tiresome year of learning potions, despite most of you who will never make the grade to continue to NEWT level. During third year you will learn about poisons, concoctions, antidotes and solutions. If you prove yourselves capable you may even be able to make potions which have more use than simply sprouting boils. I live in hope that everyone has read the introduction to intermediate potion making and now expect everyone to copy down the instructions on how to create the girding potion before attempting it. Should I find you attempt the potion before having read the introduction you will find yourselves spending the next week in detention. Begin." Severus said to the class.

I was struggling to keep myself awake whilst sat on the desk. I lifted my knees and rested my chin on them. Severus wrote some things on the big black board but I didn't understand any of it. Once finished Severus picked me back up into his arms and I quickly fell asleep.

"Severus." I said, ignoring though remembering his request.  
"I'm glad to see your awake finally Helena." Severus replied quietly. I looked around and discovered I was laid on a sofa which had conveniently appeared behind his desk.  
"Is it night time?" I asked drowsily tying to sit myself up.  
"I just have one more class left to teach today but its half way through already." Severus replied. "I spoke with a few different people about your exhaustion. They said it's normal for someone who has been through a large upheaval, especially from a bad situation. I have some potions you need to start taking daily, they will build your health and strength and should make you feel better. Would that be okay Helena?" He asked. I was too groggy to want to ask lots of questions.

"Yes Father." I muttered. He gave me a cup of dark purple water and indicated for me to drink whilst he went to direct a student who I assumed must have been confused with him as I often was. I drank the off coloured and tasting water and waited for Severus to return. As I waited a student came up to his desk to take an item from a bowl with many inside it. She looked at me and froze. I looked back at her. Although I had not often seen my reflection, I had seen it especially in the last two days from the mirror in the bathroom. Our features matched almost identically. The only obvious difference was our hair and maybe our eyes, hers looked a greenish brown colour whereas mine were blue. My hair had always been a mass of light blonde curls whereas her hair was a pleasant shade of brown with a slight wave.

"Miss Manning, is it difficult for you to take a dried frogs heart from the bowl and take it back to your work space?" Severus asked sarcastically. She ignored him as I did. She studied my face as I studied hers. I felt as though I knew her even though I didn't. "Five points from Slytherin Miss Manning." A sigh erupted from half of the students. I broke my gaze.  
"Father." I said quietly. "Look at her." I continued. "Just like me." He did look at her, an expression of astonishment resounded on his face.  
"You look alike. That's uncanny." Severus replied.

"Sestra Sarah." I said.  
"It's sister, blondie." Sarah replied still appearing confused herself. "So, how old are you?"  
"Twelve. March fifteen." I replied. She looked shocked.  
"Twin sister." Sarah muttered.  
"Is that possible?" Severus asked.  
"I was in the foster system from birth, adopted at eight by Mrs. S. Anything is possible." She answered bewildered. Tears formed in her eyes. "Can I hug her?" She wondered.  
"Helena?" Severus asked.  
"Yes." I replied. Hugs were very odd but I felt the need to be close to my sestra. She walked quickly around the desk and sat on the sofa, wrapping her arms around me. I wrapped mine back around her and hoped she wouldn't let go. When she did finally let go, she pulled back to reveal herself both laughing and crying. I wasn't sure why she was crying. Having a sestra made her sad.

"Why are you sad sestra?" I asked curiously.  
"Happy tears, meat head." Sarah replied. I puzzled over happy tears, I'd never known anyone cry from being happy. Severus was scrawling onto a piece of parchment. He stopped and passed it to Sarah.  
"You come to see me tonight, nine pm. After Helena has gone to bed." He said to her.  
"Yes Professor Snape." She said wiping her face on her sleeve.  
"You may rejoin the class now." He said as an order rather than a suggestion. Sarah left the sofa and went to rejoin a group of other students.

"I want Sarah to come back." I said. She intrigued me.  
"Another day." Severus said.  
"But.." I tried. Why did he get to speak for me anyway?  
"Another day." He repeated.  
"No. Now." I whined incessantly. I just met my sestra and now he sent her away.

Severus picked me up from the couch and I wondered if he might take me to Sarah. Instead he walked over to the door by the seat I had sat in that morning and proceeded through it into his office. As he sat down he moved my legs backwards over his lap so that I was laying face down. "What are you.." I started but realised what was happening. I kicked my legs only to have them held still as he landed a very hard SWAT on my bum. I tried to wriggle free only to receive a further SWAT from his solid hand. "Stop." I whined. A third SWAT landed on my bum. I held in the tears as to not show him that it hurt, even if it didn't hurt as much as the belt. He sat me up on his knees and looked at me.

"Helena you will not talk to me disrespectfully. You may not always like the things I tell you to do but you will do them or face the consequences. Is that clear?" He asked. I definitely didn't like it. I sulked.  
"Yes Father." I nodded.  
"Allowing you into the classroom is a show of my placing trust onto you." He added. I felt particularly sorry for myself and leant in to hug him like I had with Sarah. He hugged back and rubbed a hand up and down my back. "There isn't long left of today's class so you can stay in my arms whilst I dismiss the students." He said. I nodded into his chest and held on to him and he stood up and left one arm wrapped around me.

I blocked out everything else he said to the class and was glad when he left the classroom into the office and went from there into the living room. He set me down gently on the sofa. "Are you hungry Helena?" He asked. I was always hungry. What a silly question.  
"Yes." I replied, pulling my feet up to my chest. He went into the cupboard area and began moving back and forth taking one thing and another.  
"Will you please come over and sit at the table to eat?" Severus asked.  
"Yes." I answered, getting up from the comfy spot and going to sit on that hard chair at the table. The plate had upon it a chunk of bread, something yellow and some round red things. I grabbed the bread and ate it fast, drinking the cup of water quickly.

"Helena, do you want more water?" He asked. I turned to look at him and saw him stood not five feet away from me with a knife in his hand. I clenched my fists and looked at the floor. He told me I wasn't allowed to touch knives but then how was it fair that he was allowed. I got up from my seat and walked quickly into my room. I sat down in the corner and hoped whole heartedly that Thomas wouldn't be mad at my not taking the opportunity to try to be an angel. I didn't want to upset Severus further by taking the knife from him when I had already tested his patience by not doing as I was told. Maybe he would be mad that I left the table without saying anything. I didn't dare go back.

I closed my eyes and hoped that I would wake up. "Maybe you should go to bed for the night Helena. I know it's still very early but you seem tired." Severus said gently. I opened my eyes.  
"Yes." I answered. The sooner the day was over, the better. I felt exhausted and overwhelmed.  
"I'll find your nightdress." He replied. I got up from the corner and stood near to the bed. I knew he didn't like me to sleep in the corner, even if it felt more comforting than the bed. He unfastened the buttons on the back of the dress and helped me change to the night dress. I let him help me onto the bed and pull the blankets up over me. I curled up at the top of the bed and Severus pressed his lips to my head. "Have sweet dreams Helena." He said. The wall candles went out and he left the room, leaving the door open just enough so that I could watch the light as I fell asleep.

SNAPE POV

I shut the door to Helena's room so that it was just cracked open and looked into the living room to be confronted by the sight of Minerva at my kitchen table. I walked closer to her before talking as to avoid stirring Helena.  
"I was just getting Helena settled." I justified myself.  
"It barely six pm Severus." Minerva commented.  
"She was absolutely ready for bed. Hopefully she will become less tired as she becomes stronger." I said. Her sleeping so much did worry me but the matron had assured me that letting her sleep if she needed it was fine at this stage. She hadn't been here very long.

"Of course Severus. You wanted to discuss my offer of help?" She asked.  
"Yes. It's appreciated but I don't need help at this time. I have everything under control." I answered stoically. I didn't need people interfering with how I was going to look after my new child. She may be damaged and broken but with time she would heal and be whole again. It was after all, my fault she had no one to look after her. Although personally I felt that was a mercy.  
"You have nothing to prove Severus. We all know what a good father you will become. You were destined all along to have a child around that age, had things been different."Minerva assured. I believed that her intentions were good, I just felt no intention to take her offer of assistance. Although.

"There is one thing you could look into for me." I pressed.  
"Of course Severus. Anything to help." She answered.  
"Sarah Manning. She and Helena are undoubtedly related. Sisters even. I need to find out more about her History without raising alarms at the Ministry. I don't need prying eyes on my newly adopted daughter. She has enough issues to overcome on her own." I said seriously.  
"Sarah Manning? They look nothing alike Severus." Minerva replied.  
"When you look at the two of them side by side, you will see there is little difference." I assured.  
"Their hair alone is quite different." I frowned at her. How could she be so blind. "Magic maybe?" She asked.

"I don't think that Helena is a witch." I stated frankly.  
"How is that possible?" Minerva asked with a puzzled expression. "If her and Sarah are related. Well, I've seen Sarah perform magic well above her age in my classroom. What she lacks for in book learning she surely makes up for in power of magic."  
"I agree Minerva. Sarah has powerful spell casting capabilities. Which is why I believe that the spark of magic Dumbledore felt, should he be telling the truth on the matter, was an extension of Sarah's magic. He said he had never felt anything from her before, she should have been here at age eleven if she were really meant to be here. Sarah doesn't know her real parents, for all we know she could be muggle born. Which is why I need you to look into this. If it were to come out that I have adopted a muggle child or a squib, the implications upon myself could be severe." Minerva stared at me with a look of shock, she raised her hand to her face.

"It could take me quite some time Severus. To contact Sarah's adoptive parent and to gain relevant information." She said slowly.  
"Then I will have to wait and hope that no one decides to pry." I replied. Being an ex death eater and having a potentially muggle child could put me and Helena at great risk should the ministry let the information fall into the wrong hands, or should there be another uprising.  
"There is a sure fire way to tell if she is a witch herself." Minerva suggested quietly. I frowned at her. Did she expect me to drop the child from the astronomy tower to see if she bounced? I wouldn't allow Helena to be harmed for such a thing as determining if she was magical. It would not be in her best interests."Take her to see Ollivander." She finished.  
"The wand maker? I suppose having a wand would determine if she is a witch though if I were to do that I may as well give her my own to try out." I mused. It would all be good and well if it worked, until she turned the wand on others to get what she desired.

"Dumbledore may have an excellent sense for magic but his abilities to detect magic within a specific child are nothing compared to that of Ollivander. He has to feel the magic to determine which wand will suit the child who appears in his shop." She argued. I thought for a moment.  
"If I do that, will you still look into Sarah's background for me?" I asked.  
"Of course Severus. I said I want to help." She answered.  
"So now all I need to do is leave the school grounds without Helena being terrified by the Dementors. Have her apparated with me to Diagon alley and hope that she doesn't assume that Ollivander is a devil." I sighed. Helena had enough to deal with.  
"Write to Ollivander. Maybe you can floo from your office to his shop. I'm sure he would understand." Minerva suggested.  
"I can't believe I didn't think of that." I muttered to myself.  
"You've had a lot to take in Severus. Trust that everything will work out as it should." She replied. She got to her feet and left with a nod. Now I had over two hours to kill until Sarah arrived and even then I didn't think I'd have many answers to give her. Maybe an invite to spend an hour or two with Helena on Sunday would be enough.

When Saturday came around I felt almost relieved to be leaving for Ollivanders. Although Helena had begun listening to me more, she didn't seem to be making any other improvements. Her visible scars didn't seem to be healing much at all and she certainly hadn't gotten stronger. I found myself carrying her most of the time. Although this was no huge feat considering how light she was, it certainly wasn't ideal. A few more days, if there was no improvement, I would have Madam Pomfrey examine her again. Even if I had to have Helena drink the wretched sleeping draught again.

She was curled up on the sofa reading a story book I had asked Madam Pince to send over from the library. I'd begun to realise that probably muggle story books were enough for Helena to handle without the addition of magic to confuse her.

I went into her room and took her coat out from the wardrobe. Cissa had returned yesterday with more clothes for Helena for which I was thankful. She offered to help with Helena again but I turned her down. Helena was not any less likely to take a knife to herself than she was five days ago, she was just better at listening to me when I said no. I carried the coat out to her.  
"Helena. We need to put your coat on, we're going out today." I said gently. She looked at me in confusion for a moment before the look turned to panic.  
"Out?" She asked simply, wide eyed and frightened.  
"We're going to see Mr. Ollivander. He's a little odd looking but he is a good person, I promise. Getting there won't take long, you can hold on to me and shut your eyes the whole time." I reassured. I could practically see the information whirring around in her head.  
"Yes Father." She replied eventually and stood from the sofa. I helped her into the coat and fastened the buttons. I sat down on the sofa whilst she stood in front of me and looked at her. My daughter Helena. I really hoped she would start to get better soon. She looked back at me with a small glimmer of trust in her eyes. I knew it would take longer for her to form a bond with me.

"Helena, I need you to remember to do as I say whilst we're out." I said calmly. It worried me that there may be a stray sharp object in Ollivander's shop, though I had written to him and explained some of the situation.  
"Yes." She replied. I stood up and pulled her into my arms, wrapping her legs around my waist. Flooing from within Hogwarts was restricted but privy to that general knowledge, each teacher had control over their own fireplaces. Helena leaned closer to me.  
"Keep your eyes shut tight." I said to Helena. I took a hand full of floo powder from the pot on top of the fire place and ducked inside the alcove. I threw the powder at my feet. "Ollivander's wand shop." I said clearly. As we span through the cool air I kept my eyes open. I'd flooed enough times that the experience didn't bother me much, although I preferred apparating, especially the death eater way. Becoming black smoke was definitely one of the best perks of my time as a death eater. I watched carefully at the back of the fireplaces and noted when I saw Ollivanders. Allowing the floo powder to work its magic, we spun slower as we reached the grate. I held myself upright and ducked a little, passing through whilst on my feet and walking into the shop as though I had strolled through the door.

The wand shop looked exactly the same as when I had received my first wand over thirty years ago. As the short figure of Ollivander appeared I set Helena on her feet and kept hold of her hand.  
"It's good to see you Severus." Ollivander said gently. Really I knew he believed my alliances to be with the death eaters. Had a child not been involved I very much doubted his grate would have been open to me. Helena clutched my hand tightly and buried her head in my cloak.  
"Ollivander, this is Helena. My daughter." I said. I tried to coax her from my robes but she wasn't having any of it. Ollivander's face looked sympathetic.

"If you want to come through to the back, I have laid out drinks of tea at the table." He insisted.  
"Really I just came for your help Ollivander." I replied unmoving.  
"Then you will humour an old man and have some tea." He said motioning behind a rack of wands. I wanted to snap at him to not be such a fool. I could destroy his whole shop in a heartbeat should I feel the desire. Having Helena beside me put a spanner in the works. Hearing threats of violence from me would not be a good influence on her.  
"Of course." I replied. I looked down at Helena and resolved to carry her through to the back of the shop. I could certainly appreciate her distaste for new places. Once through to the back of the shop I sat down on the bench against the wall and placed Helena on the bench next to me, up against the corner. Ollivander sat down opposite us.

"Tea for yourself and Helena?" He asked kindly after pouring his own.  
"Only for me. Helena thus far only drinks water and milk." I replied. She looked at me with wide eyes as though maybe she did want to try the tea. I wasn't yet willing to risk her scolding herself on it.  
"No problem." He replied. He took the milk jug and poured all of the milk out into a cup. Whilst he placed the cup in front of Helena the jug refilled and he added milk to his own tea. I took a drink of my tea. I wasn't worried about poison, Ollivander didn't have it in him to harm other people even indirectly. I watched Helena follow suit and drink her milk. She placed the cup back onto the table and leaned against me sleepily. It wasn't unusual for her to be tired after being awake for only an hour or so.

"So Ollivander, can you tell me if Helena is a witch?" I asked calmly wrapping my arm around the small form cuddled against me.  
"That is quite the question Severus. You said that Helena was raised in confinement by Proleatheans, that actually helps to explain her magic." He said.  
"So she does have magic?" I interrupted.  
"I'm getting to it Severus. Before a witch or wizard turns eleven, the only magic they posses is in protection of themselves. Helena is no exception to this. My assumption is that from a young age Helena's magic has formed a shield around herself, like a disguise. In reality I doubt that Helena's hair is naturally blonde at all or that her eyes are blue. If for example Helena was born with black hair and brown eyes and realised that her appearance may find her harmed further, her protective shield would change their appearance. In order to save her, you understand." He braked to drink his tea.  
"A protective shield? I've never heard of such a thing in children." I commented.

"Had Helena's magic outed itself in her defence she may have been killed. In the eyes of the Proleatheans one who possesses magic is created by the devil. Or could actually be the devil, my research on that area was fuzzy. In result, Helena's natural magic which she probably has never realised is there, has held its disguise and probably will continue to do so until she feels safe." He finished.  
"Helena is safe with me." I retorted.  
"I have no doubt of that Severus. Her own judgement of safety most likely lies in trust and feeling. Her defences will drop only when she is ready and only when her magic allows for it. I will add that trying to remove her defences your self is a very bad idea. The shield of magic around her prevents us from detecting magic within her. Although it is evidently present, there is no way of detecting how powerful her magic is. If it would rival that of her twin sister, if Helena's magic were attacked it could destroy a person without her even intending it."  
"Twin sister? Sarah Manning?" I asked.  
"Of course Severus. They are one of the same. Their magic, even in Helena's protective form, feels identical. I would be incredibly surprised if I found they were anything less than one egg in two halves." He replied. Twins. This felt like irrevocable confirmation. Not just sisters, twin sisters.

I looked down at Helena to see if she was excited by the news. Tears were streaming down her face. I had no idea if they were happy tears or sad tears. I pulled her onto my lap and let her cry quietly into the front of my robes. I wrapped my arms around her in a gesture I hoped was reassuring.  
"Everything is okay Helena." I said quietly. I hoped the tears were happy. "What would be your advice Ollivander? Should she start classes?" I wondered. Were classes too much or was I being over protective by keeping her with me. Now was my chance to ask. I had never realised what a knowledgeable man Ollivander was.

"No Severus. Helena needs to feel safe and happy before her magic will reveal itself in a way which she can use it. Classes would be upsetting and confusing for her. For now, book learning would be more than adequate. Then when she has the ability to use her magic she will know spells and incantations to practise." He assured.  
"She has been reading a few of the introductory books. A history of magic too but I exchanged them for a story book for the time being. I felt the new knowledge was overwhelming for her." I replied.  
"A mixture of both would not be inadequate. She is of course a child, one of which most likely experienced little of a normal childhood." He suggested. I would remember to take that information on board. Every child should be allowed to be a child and not be begrudged for being so.

"I know you aren't a healer Ollivander but I do wonder why her health is not improving. She appears no more well than when I fetched her from the Proleatheans and she still sleeps most of the day and night." I worried and realised that her current even breathing and relaxed nature meant she was most assuredly asleep at that moment.  
"Beneath her veil of protection I'm certain she is healing quicker that she appears to be. However healing takes time Severus. Sleep is most likely her bodies way of healing. I would give her the time to recover in her own way." He reassured. After his revelation of Helena's protective magic it made a lot of sense that she would hide her recovery. Maybe she feared what would happen if she appeared well.

"Thank you Ollivander." I said with the realization that people were not always what they appeared to be. "Your help has been much appreciated."  
"Your most welcome Severus." He replied. He raised from his seat and turned to a cabinet tucked under the back of a rack of wands. He opened the doors and revealed a dusty deep green wand box. He blew the dust away and brought the box back to the table. "A wand for Helena. For when she requires one." He said.  
"No ceremonious trail of wands?" I asked curiously although appreciative that he had suggested a wand for her.  
"I am completely certain that this wand is for Helena. Eight Inches made from the highest branch of an Ash tree, the tree of her birth date according to the Celtic calendar. Thestral hair core fallen from a new born and quite supple. I would wager my shop that there is no wand better suited to this child." He pushed the box across the table to me.

"How much do I owe you?" I asked him.  
"Free of charge. This wand is priceless." He replied gently.  
"Thank you, Ollivander. I should be getting Helena home." I placed the wand box in a pocket of my robe and stood with Helena in my arms.  
"Any time." Ollivander replied.

_Thanks for reading! I'm not sure whether to continue or not so let me know what you think! Helena with magic could be kind of terrifying!_


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